Verstappen slams ‘quite bad’ Silverstone start - Marko sees hope

Max Verstappen endured a challenging start to his British Grand Prix weekend, describing his Friday practice sessions at Silverstone as “quite a bad day” due to persistent balance issues with his Red Bull RB21.

The reigning four-time world champion’s struggles contrasted with a more optimistic outlook from Red Bull motorsport advisor Helmut Marko, who highlighted encouraging signs in the team’s race pace despite the car’s shortcomings.

Verstappen, coming off a disappointing retirement on the opening lap of the Austrian Grand Prix, struggled to find his rhythm at Silverstone.

In the first practice session, he languished in 10th place, trailing Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton by over half a second. While he climbed to fifth in FP2, he remained almost half a second adrift of McLaren’s pacesetter Lando Norris.

Verstappen’s Frustration with RB21 Balance

Reflecting on his performance, Verstappen was candid about the difficulties he faced.

“For me personally it was quite a bad day. No balance in the car,” he told Sky TV. “It's very difficult to corner as well. So quite a poor day I think for us in general.”

The Dutchman pointed to the car’s sensitivity to Silverstone’s gusty conditions as a key factor.

“Every weekend is different – different scenarios,” he said. “Right now with the wind around here, it seems like our car seems quite sensitive to it, but in general, it's not been an easy day.”

• Read also: McLaren sees 'very strong’ Ferrari as biggest threat at Silverstone

When asked about potential solutions to unlock more pace from the RB21 overnight, Verstappen remained cautious.

“Maybe a few that we'll look at, but I think overall, it was just lacking a bit of performance,” he admitted. His comments reflect ongoing challenges for Red Bull, who have struggled with car balance throughout the 2025 season, a problem compounded by a lack of correlation between wind tunnel data and on-track performance.

Marko Sees Silver Lining in Race Pace

In contrast, Helmut Marko offered a more upbeat assessment, focusing on Red Bull’s long-run performance and tyre management. While acknowledging the team’s struggles, he noted improvements from FP1 to FP2 and expressed confidence in their race pace relative to rivals.

“We made a big step from FP1 to FP2,” Marko explained, quoted by RacingNews365. “But still, we have to find the right balance and we have to get rid of massive understeer in two or three corners.

“The long run was more promising. So if we can find the problems or cure the problems, I think we would be competitive.”

Marko also cast doubt on Ferrari’s race pace, despite their strong showing in FP2, where Hamilton and teammate Charles Leclerc finished second and third.

“What I saw, Hamilton had massive graining after quite a few laps, Mercedes also had graining,” Marko said. “And our graining was reasonable, like McLaren’s. So that’s a good sign.”

His comments suggest Red Bull could have an edge in tyre degradation, a critical factor for Sunday’s race, especially given Silverstone’s demanding high-speed corners.

With qualifying still to come and Red Bull traditionally stronger on Saturdays, all eyes will be on whether Verstappen can turn his fortunes around overnight – or whether Ferrari and McLaren will continue to hold the upper hand.

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